Brits warned of quad bike and moped dangers
ABTA has issued a warning to Brits about the dangers of hiring mopeds and quad bikes during their holiday.
It says 4.5 million British adults have put themselves at risk by hiring mopeds and quad bikes overseas.
It is strongly advising holidaymakers and other travellers to think twice before hiring mopeds and to only ride quad bikes as part of an organised excursion.
ABTA members reported 36 quad bike accidents and seven moped accidents last year. Already this year, seven people have been involved in quad bike accidents on the road.
ABTA believes the total number of accidents to be much higher as this number is just from its members.
It said in recent years, quad bikes have become increasingly popular, particularly in Greece, Cape Verde and Turkey.
Hiring mopeds has also become common among British travellers in countries such as Thailand and Vietnam.
Nikki White, ABTA director of destinations and sustainability, said: "Every year people suffer serious injuries after hiring mopeds or quad bikes while on holiday. Many have little experience of using these vehicles and are also unfamiliar with the local roads and driving standards.
"It’s so easy when you’re relaxing on holiday to do things you wouldn’t dream of doing back home, but you are putting yourself at risk of serious injury if you hire these vehicles, and on top of that, many travel insurance policies won’t cover such activities. We’re advising holidaymakers who have little experience on mopeds to think twice before hiring these vehicles, and only ride quad bikes if they are part of a properly supervised off-road excursion."
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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